MMA and Number 2....

I read as some of the announcements for the fighters who came along to Strikeforce from Elite XC in the buyout or whatever. First off of course I was pissed guys like Silva (obviously outside reasons there) and Rodgers were left without a contract but Kimbo Slice was still brought along for another ride. That aside I really began to think of what it would take in Mixed Martial Arts for there to be a legitimate number two to the UFC. After weighing the pros and cons I honestly think it's near impossible and I will tell you why:

First off I would assume any company who wants to rise to the UFC's heights would have to develop a loyal and respectful number of pay per view buys once per month or one every two months depending on how many events they put on. Now with the popularity of the UFC and the company pretty much being a sport brand meaning in essence MMA doesn't exsist without the UFC and vice versa the UFC's pay per view buys will remain constant. They may go up or down a bit but unless there is a drastic spike in popularity for some reason the same ball park they will remain. That being said with the state of the U.S. economy I honestly just don't believe dollars wise people have enough money to sincerly follow a number two along with the UFC. I'm going to assume most fans of the number two would remain UFC fans as well. That being said there may be one or two super fights a year this number two could pass of as can't miss events that people would buy. You compare that to the UFC holding an event on ppv every month putting up decent numbers and there's real no comparison or no real way to be successful.

I don't want to ramble on and on about this being my first blog back after quite a hiatus but in 2008 I purchased the Affliction event which featured Sylvia/Fedor. Now honestly such a stacked event filled with good heavyweight fights lured me in but how often would I do that or could I afford to do that while I order one UFC event per month? Maybe once or twice a year. I would assume I'm much like the MMA fan more the casual but not quite a fanatic. I just can't afford a number two right now.